Upgrading my PT Solo?

[Jedi Knife]

I think the bulb died on my faithful Princeton Tec "Solo" headlamp. I want to upgrade this to LED, drop-in only. Yes I can solder and cut things, but have no desire to do so. Just looking for a drop in mod. Could anyone tell me exactly what I need and then where to get it? Thanks a bunch!

 

[Lefselight]

I believe that the PT Solo is the same as the PT Matrix and PT Quest, which I have. If so, go to Sears and get the Sears Craftman PR drop-in. Good for 1.5-8 volts. About $15. My reflectors are textured. Very floody beam, with a somewhat soft hot spot. I tend to like a fairly floody beam in a headllamp, so it works well for me. Haven't had it long enough to really check out throw (probably not real great in this particular application, although pretty bright), runtime, or heat buildup. Works the same in my PT 20 and PT 40, because the reflectors are the same. PT 40 brighter because the voltage is higher. In other PR bulb flashlights seems to work best with textured reflectors or focusable flashlights. In non-focusable, smooth reflectors, results vary. Some good. Some not. I think it's worth checking out. I like it so far. Hope this helps.

 

[vtunderground]

Or, for a very bright mod, you can put in the bulb from a 5-D Maglite, and a pair of AW's 14500 Li-Ion batteries.

I know that's not an LED mod, but it should be fun!

 

[mrme]

Unless you are taking advantage of the waterproof nature of this headlamp, I would just upgrade the whole thing. It really lacks the ergonomics of most headlamps on the market today.

But I am sure you can find PR based LEDs that would work. Be cafrefull with Luxeon or other higher power LEDs that require heatsinking, as these might melt your bulb holder. I have not had any problems running incadescents on the warm side, though I have never tried any LEDs.